Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
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Omaha
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Racers Sweep Omaha for First Win of Season
8/25/2018 11:59:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
The first victory of the 2018 season is in the books for the Murray State volleyball team as they swept the Omaha Mavericks, 25-21, 25-20, 25-20, at the New Orleans Invitational, Saturday morning.
Rachel Giustino led the Racers with 15 kills, while hitting .303 and Callie Anderton dished out 33 assists. On defense, Alex Kaufmann and Becca Fernandez each had eight digs and Kolby McClelland had three blocks.
As a team, Murray State hit .271 and had eight service aces after not recording an ace in yesterday's match against Houston.
The Racers bolted out of the starting gate in the first set, jumping out to an 8-0 lead, forcing the Mavericks to take a timeout before scoring a point. Giustino had two aces on the run, including the first point of the match and Katirah Johnson contributed with two kills. Omaha battled back to get within two at 12-10, but the Racers scored four straight points, which included three consecutive aces by McClelland, to create the separation they needed. Megan Lindsay eventually secured the set with a kill to take it, 25-21.
Murray State used another quick start in the second set, taking a 7-2 lead early. Omaha came back to tie the set at 10, but a 7-1 run by the Racers, which included a kill by four different players and a big block by Dacia Brown and McClelland, helped MSU gain control. After some back-and-forth action, Murray State took the set, 25-20, on a kill by Giustino.
In the third set, Omaha took an early 4-2 lead before Murray State went on a 9-2 run, culminated by a kill from Giustino, to take an 11-6 lead. The Mavericks battled back to get within one point at 16-15 and 21-20, but the Racers would not give up the lead as they ended the match on a 4-0Â run, which included two kills by Rachel Holthaus, to give the Racers the third set and their first victory of the season.
MSU is back in action at the New Orleans Invitational tonight at 5 p.m. when they take on the host Privateers. New Orleans defeated Omaha before falling to Houston in five sets, yesterday.
